Sir Alex Ferguson has stepped up his long-running feud with Arsene Wenger by claiming Patrick Vieira wants to play for Manchester United.
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Vieira: Tempted by lure of OT, says Sir Alex.
(BenRadford/Allsport) |
The Premiership's two most successful managers have a history of verbal spats and the battle is already raging with the new season still 10 days' away.
Last month Wenger suggested that United had paid £10 million too much for England defender Rio Ferdinand, but now Ferguson has hit back by saying that the Arsenal captain would prefer to be at Old Trafford.
Ferguson said: 'They would all like to come here. Patrick Vieira would love to have come here last year, but they wouldn't let him.
'Players will always want to play for a bigger club. That's life. There is no player in this country who wouldn't want to play for Manchester United. We are, without question, the highest profile team in the world.
'We have the best disciplinary record in the country. We score the most goals. We entertain the most.
'And we put more into a winning game than any other team in the world.' Ferguson's latest jibe is certain to anger Wenger, who has repeatedly insisted that French international Vieira is happy at Arsenal and has no desire to move.
Ferguson also mocked Wenger's claims of a power shift following Arsenal's Double last season.
He added: 'I am lucky. I am working for the best club in the world. I don't have problem players.
'Once you are successful you say 'thank God people are giving us stick, because then we know we're the best'. There's a price to pay for being the best and we pay it.'
Freddie Ljungberg has insisted that Arsenal can defend the Double and make the breakthrough in Europe.
The Swedish international midfielder is sidelined until October with a hip injury, but returns to Highbury this week to continue his rehabilitation.
Ljungberg admitted: 'We want to defend the Double, of course, but I think we can also improve our games in the Champions League.
'The season after we won the Double we lost the League to Manchester United by just a point.
'The following year they ran away with it and that was annoying. We were a big team and were used to winning, but we lost against the 'smaller' teams. I think that was the difference last season - we won those games.'
He added: 'Also, the new arrivals from the previous 12 months had had another 12 months to gel with the team.
'We fought for each other and that counts for more than individual performances in those tough away games.
'I will be 100 per cent fit when I am back. We need to defend the title, so it's a bit annoying not to be going straight back.
'I have been on crutches for 10 days, but at least now I can get around, even if it is a little sore.'
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